love god & love life

mission and history

OUR MISSION

To proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and Head of the Church and to
continue and maintain the Church being centered on the principles
and truths of God's word (Bible fed and Bible led). The Church is
to teach God's word with simplicity and understanding so that the
people of God can apply it to their everyday lives. It is through
the Word of God that we attain to perfection, maturity and
edification to do the work of ministry. Therefore, we endeavor to
prepare and equip every member for every good work of God
(Proverbs 4:7; Ephesians 4:12

OUR HISTORY

Fifth Baptist Church enjoys a rich heritage of spiritual and
physical growth. The roots of Fifth Baptist can be traced to
humble beginnings in February, 1865. A small group of slaves
sharing a desire to worship the Lord would slip away from their
quarters during the late evening hours. A torn and tattered shed
located near a trash dump on Navy Hill is where the slaves would
gather, risking punishment and death, to sing and offer prayers
of thanksgiving and liberation.

Slavery was abolished and the ex-slaves continued their
religious journey. In 1872, Warwick stable, located at the corner
of Morris and Main Streets, was chosen as the new site for the
church. The Rev. Charles Bowles was chosen as the first pastor
and services were held on the second floor of the stable without
fear of reprisal from the slave masters.

From the beginning, informal groups of men, referred to as
trustee, directed the activities of the church. The early
trustees sought to build the church on a solid spiritual and
financial foundation allowing for orderly worship and growth.

Attendance and support of the church continued to grow and a
decision was made to build a church. On February 27, 1894, a
parcel of land located at 1400 West Cary Street was purchased and
a Gothic design edifice was constructed. The new church featured
stained glass windows, a choir loft and a pump styled organ. read
the full history of Fifth Baptist Church.

The new church building proved to be a catalyst for growth and
decision making of the church. Some members of the early Deacon
Board included Daniel Brown, James Carter, Ben Minor, John
Piercy, Charlie Shannon, Major White and Emmett Alford.

The early church saw the need to keep accurate and ongoing record
keeping. A church clerk was elected and was responsible for
record keeping, keeping accurate lists of those persons scheduled
for baptism, recording information on incoming members and an
array of other duties. Some of the early church clerks were Joe
Davis, George King, James Orange, and David Cheek.

Sunday School at Fifth is more than 75 years
old. Sunday School provides Bible study, religious training and
spiritual growth for children, teens and adults. Early Sunday
School Superintendents include Junious Orange, Moses Lewis,
Robert Lee, Martin Crittenden, Ada Green and Joseph Taylor.

The church had one choir for many years. This one choir later
divided and became the Junior and Senior Choirs. Early leaders
included Ola Mayo Garrett, Avis Turner, Florence Fields, and
Elizabeth Anderson. During the past fifth years, several choirs
were formed.

During the past 143 years, God has blessed
Fifth Baptist Church with dynamic pastors with a vision of
growth. Reverend Dr. Earl M. Brown has served as pastor since
1978. He was preceded by early pastors including Reverends
Anderson Taylor, William Dobbins, A.D. Daly, R. S. Anderson, John
Clark and James Kelley.

Under the leadership of Rev.
Kelly, Fifth Baptist experienced unprecedented growth and a need
for a new edifice. A fund-raising drive was launched in 1968 and
over $350,000.00 was raised to purchase land and construct a new
building at West Cary Street, and in October 1978, the church
purchased the land at 1415 West Cary Street from the Richmond
Development Commission. The current church building was completed
in January 1984 and was dedicated on March 4, 1984.

The
church continues to grow in all areas and will need to expand
physical facilities in the near future due to optimal growth and
program development.

That vision came true under the
leadership of Dr. Earl M. Brown. The facility now has a new
commercial size kitchen, renovated Secretarial suite, Co-pastor
office suite, Financial Secretary office, Choir Room, renovated
fellowship Hall, and a Family Life Center including a full size
gym.